6 June 2016 – Washington, DC, USA – U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx today announced that the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant program has received 585 applications from across the country totaling $9.3 billion in requested funding – over 18 times more than the $500 million that will be awarded. Now in its eighth year, the TIGER program has continued to attract overwhelming demand from communities of all sizes, with 337 applications coming from urban areas and 248 from rural communities. The high level of interest underscores the continued need for transportation investment nationwide.

“Communities across the country know that if we want a strong, multimodal transportation system that will meet our needs in the future, we need to make meaningful investments today,” said Secretary Foxx (pictured). “As we have seen year after year, there are far more worthy projects than we can fund through TIGER, demonstrating the need for a serious, long-term investment in transportation funding.

Like the first seven rounds, 2016 TIGER discretionary grants will fund capital investments in surface transportation infrastructure and will be awarded on a competitive basis for projects that will have a significant impact on the nation, a metropolitan area, or a region. The 2016 TIGER grant program focuses on capital projects that generate economic development and improve access to reliable, safe and affordable transportation for communities, both urban and rural. As in previous rounds, the TIGER program supports projects that promote safety, economic competitiveness, quality of life, environmental sustainability and state of good repair. The program also prioritizes innovation, partnership and ladders of opportunity.

The highly competitive TIGER program, which began as a part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, offers federal funding possibilities for large, transformative multi-modal projects. Since 2009, TIGER has provided nearly $4.6 billion to 381 projects in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, including 134 projects to support rural and tribal communities. Overall, the Department has received more than 6,700 applications requesting more than $134 billion for transportation projects across the country.

TIGER funding was provided in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2016, signed by President Obama on December 18, 2015. More information about previous years’ TIGER grantees as well as this year’s application process can be found at http://www.transportation.gov/tiger.

The United States Department of Transportation (USDOT or DOT) is a Cabinet department of the U.S. government concerned with transportation. Established by the US Congress in 1966, it is governed by the U.S. Secretary of Transportation. Its mission is to “Serve the United States by ensuring a fast, safe, efficient, accessible, and convenient transportation system that meets our vital national interests and enhances the quality of life of the American people, today and into the future.” DOT provides financing for hundreds of transportation-related programs and projects around the United States each year. For more information, visit http://www.dot.gov/.